The 2000m-class Taisetsu Mountain range is often referred to by the Ainu people as Kamui Mintara", or the Garden of the Gods, as it is a beautiful mountain range covered in snow with truly majestic landscapes to gaze upon. The main peak Asahidake is Hokkaido's highest peak, and the 230,000 hectare area around Asahidake is designated as a national park. Snow remains in the valleys in the midsummer, and because of the high altitude and high latitude, there are over 360 varieties of alpine plant growing here. There are plenty of animals in the park as well, such as brown bears, foxes, sika deer, and others, representing 90% of the 23 species of ground mammal in Hokkaido. The birds are designated as a national treasure including black woodpeckers and Blakiston's fish-owl among 140 other species. There is a cable car that will take you past the forest limit up to the 1600m point on the highest peak Asahidake, and at the final point Sugatamie-eki there is a 1 hour sightseeing path you can take that runs about 1.7km. On the path is Sugataminoike where you can see water accumulated in the volcano opening as well as many rare alpine plants growing in the wetlands.